Illumination-Dependent Charge Carrier Dynamics and Photoelectrochemical Performance of LaFeO3

Dond-Hwan Hwang^a, GyeongCheon Choi^a, Gayoung Ham^b, Chan Gyu Yoon^a, Min-Gyu Son^c, Hyojung Cha^b, Ji-Youn Seo^a

^aDepartment of Nano Fusion Technology, Pusan National University, Busan, Republic of Korea

^bSchool of Energy Engineering, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea

^cNano Convergence Materials Center, Emerging Materials R&D Division, Korea Institute of Ceramic Engineering & Technology (KICET), Jinju, Republic of Korea

Asia-Pacific International Conference on Perovskite, Organic Photovoltaics and Optoelectronics
Proceedings of Asia-Pacific International Conference on Perovskite, Organic Photovoltaics and Optoelectronics (IPEROP27)

Fukuoka, Japan, 2027 January 18th - 20th

Organizers: Zhanglin Guo and Tingli Ma

Poster, Dond-Hwan Hwang, 102
Publication date: 22nd October 2026

Lanthanum iron oxide (LaFeO3) exhibits strong ultraviolet (UV) absorption, making its photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance highly dependent on the spectral overlap between illumination and its absorption profile. In this work, the PEC behavior of LaFeO3 thin films was investigated under two illumination sources: a xenon arc lamp with broadband emission, including UV photons, and a light-emitting diode (LED) lamp with negligible UV contribution. The structural and optoelectronic properties of the films were tuned by varying the number of spin-coated layers, and charge carrier dynamics were analyzed to quantify recombination rates and carrier lifetimes. PEC measurements were further optimized using O2-saturated electrolytes, considering the catalytic role of LaFeO3 in oxygen reduction. Under xenon arc lamp illumination with O2 purging, the photocurrent density initially reached ~0.58 mA cm-2 and stabilized at ~0.39 mA cm-2 after 3 h, significantly outperforming other illumination and environmental conditions. These results highlight the critical role of illumination spectra and electrolyte environment in modulating charge separation and transport, offering guidelines for enhancing the practical PEC performance of LaFeO3 based photoelectrodes.

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Acknowledgements:

This work was supported by a 2–year research grant of Pusan National University.

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